Hold your horses Bugatti
On August 6th the Bugatti Chiron recorded the fastest 0-400-0km/h run ever at 42 seconds - on October 1st, Swedish supercar manufacturer Koenigsegg had an emphatic response.
It has been revealed that Koenigsegg factory driver, Niklas Lilja, has driven the 865kW (1,160hp) Koenigsegg Agera RS from 0 to 400km/h and back to 0 in 36.44 seconds - just shy of seven seconds faster than the Chiron.
But what makes the time all the more remarkable are the circumstances around which it was set.
The company had planned to run the speed test between September 30th and October 2nd at a German test facility, but a poor weather forced them to set those plans on ice.
A window of good weather was found closer to their home base in southern Scandinavia on Sunday the 1st of October, so the decision was made to move the run to Vandel Airfield in Denmark.
The change of venue was arranged so quickly that test driver Vandel’s availability only came through just 12 hours before the Agera RS left the Koenigsegg factory for the 4-hour drive to the track.
The change in location also meant that a different car has to be used, one destined for delivery in the United states.
Koenigsegg go on to say; "The last-minute nature of the test is also why the car still has industrial tape over various surfaces to protect them from debris. The application of tape is standard procedure during normal pre-delivery testing at Koenigsegg and we did not have time to remove it."
The Vandel airfield was built during World War II and was used for decades thereafter as a base for the Danish Army Air Service. It was closed for military purposes in 2003 and is now the largest solar farm in Scandinavia.
The runway is less than ideal for speed testing. With bumps, small pot holes and a smooth surface, both car and driver had a lot to deal with - but in the end it didn't seem to matter.
The Agera RS took 26.88 seconds to accelerate to 400 km/h over a distance of 1,958 meters. Deceleration took 9.56 seconds over 483 meters. The total distance used for 0-400-0km/h was 2,441 meters. But those times are for the 0-400-0 section of the run.
The entire run saw a speed of 403 km/h attained before deceleration began. The entire run from 0-403-0 km/h took 37.28 seconds over a distance of 2,535m.
Performance data for the run was captured using an AiM EVO5 data logger along with an AiM GPS08.
A single mechanic and Koeningsegg founder and CEO, Christian von Koenigsegg, were on hand to prepare the Agera RS on the day.
“It makes me so proud, so happy and excited to see what we have achieved as a team with the Agera RS," said von Koenigsegg.
"A result like this does not just happen. It may have only taken a few hours of driving to complete this run, but we cannot overlook all of the work that went into creating the car in the first place.
"Building these cars takes everything we have. We give it our all, every day of every week. Without this commitment to excellence, we would not be worthy of either the result or the reward.
"Dreams CAN become reality. The story of David and Goliath continues to resonate. It is so important to visualize our efforts and results. It gives fuel to the dreamers and visionaries striving to realise their goals. YOU CAN DO IT, regardless of how impossible it seems. This is probably the most important aspect and consequence of what we do here at Koenigsegg.
Feel inspired yet?
Well done Koenigsegg, today the motoring world salutes from all corners of the globe.
